Early Mardi Gras continues the party without pause

Ahh, if you listen closely you can hear the marching bands playing and the scraping of barricades on the asphalt. Usually we have some time to get our lives back together after the holidays and before the boom-boom starts up, but not this year.

Boozie’s social calendar is already packed with barn parties and Mardi Gras balls, which is leaving no room for my New Year’s resolutions, which I’ve already, umm, worked so hard on. So, in order to prepare for the upcoming festivities, Boozie took it easy this weekend. No worries, I still have some gossip to dish out. But just realize it is the calm before the storm.

Turnt up This past Friday afternoon, I was making my way downtown — unfortunately to the post office, not to happy hour — when I noticed something up ahead. I was passing Cathedral Square on the Dauphin Street side when I caught a glimpse of a man with no shirt on. Keep in mind, that Friday was pretty chilly.

Once I got a closer look, I noticed he wearing nothing but gym shorts, a doo-rag and sunglasses. Yep, no shoes, no socks, no jacket, just gym shorts. He was also holding a football, pretending to throw it to people walking by and dancing around.

Boozie immediately assumed he had lost a bet or it was some sort of twisted Mardi Gras society initiation. At least I hope it was one of those things.

After the post office run, I circled back around to see what kind of dance moves the guy was doing but I was surprised to find him sitting on the ground fully dressed. You just never know what you are going to see in Mobtown!

Balls, y’all: Powerball Like many folks, Boozie jumped on the Powerball train. Who wouldn’t want $900 million?? Think of all the Bushwackers you could buy with that. And speaking of Bushwackers, Boozie couldn’t make a visit to Florida without stopping at her favorite watering hole, Flora-Bama.

Flora-Bama is a lot different on a Saturday afternoon in January than a Saturday afternoon in the other months that start with J. One word: snowbirds. I don’t get to say this often, but I was the youngest person in the bar by at least 10 years. But that didn’t mean I was having the most fun. There were a few folks brave enough to hit the dance floor! Boozie would have needed at least four more Bushwackers to even consider getting out there with them. There was even a group that decided to “hot box” before they came inside.

But back to the reason everyone was there: the $900 million lottery.

The line to get Powerball tickets at Flora-Bama was out the door. In the bar everyone was talking about it, even the band made a few mentions of what they would do with the money if they won. The bartenders were dreaming of being on the other side of bar if they had the lucky numbers, and even bar patrons were asking the others if they’d gotten their tickets. Clearly none of us won, but it’s still nice to dream about it.

Balls y’all: Mardi Gras Even though parades haven’t yet rolled through downtown, the Mardi Gras balls are in full swing. One thing is for sure, if you plan to live in Mobile, you should invest in tails or a ball gown or, shoot, maybe even both, depending on what balls you plan to attend.

This past weekend the Civic Center saw familiar faces for the Etruscans ball. And as always, there was some questionable attire on the ladies’ part. Boozie can’t wait to see for herself all the bad choices people make in the coming weeks. Just one little piece of advice: Most people can’t pull off dresses with cut outs. Just sayin’.

Also, this past weekend was the Dominoes Ball over at the Athelstan Club. Boozie hears it was big-time fancy and a great start to a busy Mardi Gras season.

Screw you Boozie caught word of a national pizza chain out in Semmes that must’ve not had their screws all tightened when they made a certain supreme pizza. One customer ordered a pizza only to find a screw in it! They really screwed that one up!

Boozie isn’t sure how they even spotted it baked under cheese and veggies, but they did. The manager at the local pizza place didn’t seem to think it was a big deal and offered them a new pizza. Umm, no thanks. No word on what the corporate office thinks of the matter or how they plan to make it right.

Well, kids, that’s all I’ve got this week. Just remember, whether rain or shine, dramatic or scandalous or just some plain ol’ Powerball lovin’, I will be there. Ciao!